Lee Peace

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has pledged to "unleash the economic potential of the north" as his party set out plans for ambitious new rail links to revitalise the region.

At Labour's economic conference in Liverpool, Mr Corbyn said the party would redress the imbalances in a country which was becoming more "unfair and unbalanced" under the Conservatives.
Earlier, shadow chancellor John McDonnell announced a Labour government would build a "Crossrail of the North", slashing travel times between east and west.

He said the 'High Speed 3' rail link would transform the economy of northern England, creating 850,000 additional jobs by 2050.

Mr Corbyn added it was in contrast to the Government which was prioritising east-west links between Cambridge and Oxford.

He told the conference: "The corridor of northern cities stretching from Liverpool and Preston in the west to York and Hull in the east has an economic and skills catchment big enough to match or even exceed London, and there's no reason why not with the right investment.
"The Government should sort out its priorities and commit to build Crossrail for the North now. To unleash the economic potential across the North we must rebalance our economy to share power and resources.
"Unbalanced Britain is only becoming more unfair and unbalanced under the Tories; between the rich and poor, between Westminster and our nations and regions.
"Labour will challenge that failure and we will redress that by fixing a rigged system that is failing the majority of people."
Mr McDonnell said: "Labour is absolutely committed to delivering HS3, a Crossrail for the North, starting right here in Liverpool and connecting the great cities of the north of England.

"It's at least a £10 billion commitment from Labour to invest in the North. Crossrail for the North will become the foundations for a transformed northern economy."

The Conservatives, however, warned Labour's borrowing plans would "crash" the economy, threatening jobs and infrastructure investment.

A Conservative spokesman said: "The truth is Labour's real policy of borrowing half a trillion pounds would hurt ordinary working people by crashing our economy and threatening jobs and infrastructure."